Target to Pay Visa Issuers Up To $67M in Settlement Over 2013 Breach

Target Corp. has reached an agreement with Visa Inc. to settle claims over the massive 2013 data breach that exposed 40 million credit and debit cards to fraud.

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, the retail giant will reimburse thousands of financial institutions up to $67 million for costs associated with the compromise.

In addition, Target said it is currently working on a similar agreement with MasterCard issuers.

In May, MasterCard and Visa failed to reach an agreement over a $19 settlement due to a lack of support from impacted banks and credit unions.

“This agreement attempts to put this event behind us, and increase the industry’s focus on protecting against future compromises with new technologies,” said Visa in a statement.

The total amount of fraud resulting from Target’s breach is yet unknown. However, trade groups representing community banks and credit unions estimated spending over $350 million to issue replacement cards and address other breach-related issues, said the WSJ.

Although Target and Visa both confirmed the settlement on Tuesday, the exact amount to be paid out was not disclosed.

The retailer said in a statement the costs of the settlement have already been reflected in its previously reported fiscal 2013 and 2014 results.

In a separate suit, Minneapolis attorney Charles Zimmerman, the lead counsel in a lawsuit against Target by banks seeking class-action status, said the Visa settlement was “Target’s latest effort to avoid fully reimbursing financial institutions for the losses suffered as a result of its data breach.”

The hearing for the suit involving smaller lenders is scheduled on Sept. 10.

Zimmerman stated the lawsuit seeks “to hold Target accountable for damages far greater than what has been offered under this settlement.”